Carpet-trimming templates

ABSTRACT

A template promoting the accurate cutting and laying of wall-towall carpeting or other floor covering which template is rested on the floor beneath the outer edge portion of the carpet with the template back abutting the wall and with the carpet resting on the upwardly angled front face of said template, said template front face having a longitudinal knife-receiving slot therein whereby a cutting tool can be used to sever the carpet portion thereabove, the distance between the template forward edge and said knife-receiving slot being the same as the distance from said template forward edge to the wall, whereby the carpet edge will fit snugly in abutting relation against said wall.

United States Patent Weber July 25, 1972 s41 CARPET-TRIMMING TEMPLATES FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [72] Inventor: Russell W. Weber, 8820 W. Spokane St., 851,088 10/1960 Great Britain ..30/289 Milwaukee, Wis. 53224 Primary Examiner-Leonard Forman [22] Filed May Assistant Examiner-Charles E. Phillips Appl. No.: 43,331

Attorney-Morse" & Morsell [57] ABSTRACT A template promoting the accurate cutting and laying of wallto-wall carpeting or other floor covering which template is rested on the floor beneath the outer edge portion of the carpet with the template back abutting the wall and with the carpet resting on the upwardly angled front face of said template, said template from face having a longitudinal knife-receiving slot therein whereby a cutting tool can be used to sever the carpet portion thereabove, the distance between the template forward edge and said knife-receiving slot being the same as the distance from said template forward edge to the wall, whereby the carpet edge will fit snugly in abutting relation against said wall.

6 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATEMEU JUL 2 5 I972 INVENTOR RUSSELL W. WEBER ATTORNEYS CARPET-TRIMMING TEMPLATES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION l. Field of the lnvention The present invention relates to tools and accessories for trimming and installing wall-to-wall carpets or other floor coverings, and more particularly to a novel template for use in trimming such floor coverings.

2. Description of the Prior Art Wall-to-wall carpeting or the like cannot ordinarily be precut to the exact size and shape of the floor to be covered, of course, and the conventional method of laying and trimming such carpeting is to secure it firmly in the intersection of the floor and wall by means of a suitable adhesive or tape and to then manually cut off the excess carpet portion which extends upwardly against the wall by means of a knife-like cutting tool. the cut edge of said carpet being intended to fit in abutting relation to the wall. Unfortunately, when the carpeting is initially bent upwardly against the wall, as described, the bottom layer, or backing of the carpet, is necessarily stretched, while the upper layer, or nap, is compressed by such bending action. The result is that the cut edge of the carpet is formed on a bias or angle when the carpet is straightened out, and will not firmly abut the wall as desired. This is particularly true with shag or other long-napped carpets.

A further disadvantage of conventional carpet-laying and trimming procedures is that the portion of the carpet adjacent the edge must be adhesively or otherwise secured to the floor prior to the trimming operation, rather than after the carpet has been trimmed and fitted, thereby preventing the shifting of said trimmed carpet to compensate for possible errors in the trimming operation. Moreover, due to the unavoidable nonuniform characteristic of the adhesive connection between difi'erent portions of the floor and carpet, the varying stiffness and thickness of different styles and qualities of carpet, and the irregularities in the plane of the floor surface and wall alignment, objectionable wrinkles and furrows can be created in the carpet during the installation, in addition to said carpet buckling back from the wall if it is cut too long or creating a gap between said carpet and the wall if it is cut too short. Further, when the trimming operation is performed manually, as described, the exact angular position of the cutting blade is necessarily a matter of guesswork and it frequently occurs that the trimmed edge does not conform precisely to the contour of the wall or baseboard. As a result, either an insufficient amount is trimmed from the carpet, which necessitates timeconsuming re-cutting (which is very difficult to do), or too much carpet is inadvertently trimmed in spots, which necessitates patching and filling with small pieces or strips of carpeting. Obviously the latter results in an unsatisfactory, patchedup job.

A still further critical shortcoming of conventional carpettrimming methods is that when the user manually cuts through the carpeting the blade of the cutting tool often cuts into and mars the wall or baseboard therebehind, which produces an unsightly appearance and is very unsatisfactory, as well as dulling the blade.

l-leretofore a number of trimming forms and special tools have been designed in an attempt to ensure the accurate cutting of carpets, and to avoid the difficulties hereinabove mentioned, but none of said prior devices has proven entirely satisfactory. For one thing, many of said prior carpet-trimming devices are relatively complex and expansive in design and construction, as well as being difficult to use for one who is not a skilled and experienced craftsman. Moreover, with most of said prior devices it is still necessary to cement or otherwise secure the carpet to the floor prior to the trimming operation, rather than subsequently thereto, with the consequent disadvantages hereinbefore described. In addition, even with the use of the special tools and guides heretofore employed, the blade on the cutting tool is projected through the carpet material during the trimming operation and cuts into and defaces the wall or baseboard therebehind.

Examples of prior carpet-trimming implements are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,509,633; 2,795,854; 3,395,453; 3,382,579; 2,414,408; and 3,363,3 l4.

SUMMARY OF THE lNVENTlON As hereinbefore described, the present invention provides a guide, or so-called template, for use in trimming wall-to-wall carpeting or other floor coverings. Said template is designed to be longitudinally movably positioned on the floor with the back thereof firmly abutting the wall and with the outer peripheral portion of the carpet resting on the upwardly curved front face of said template. The template from face has a longitudinal knife-receiving slot formed therein, and extending the entire length thereof, which permits a cutting tool to be used to sever the excess carpet portion thereabove, said template being shifled longitudinally along the wall until the entire length of the carpet has been trimmed. Due to the unique relationship whereby the distance between the wall and the forward edge of the template is precisely the same as the distance between said template forward edge and the aforementioned knife-receiving slot, measured along the curved face of said template, when the carpet is trimmed the cut edge thereof is designed to fit snugly and evenly against the wall or baseboard.

A further advantage of the invention is that with the use of the present template it is unnecessary to bond or otherwise secure the carpet to the floor prior to the trimming operation, as with most conventional installations, thereby permitting the shifting of the carpet ifdesired. Moreover, in some states it is advantageous to leave the carpet loose so that it can be legally removed by the occupants if they move to a new residence, which is not allowed if the floor covering is secured to he floor.

As mentioned, it is impossible to use most prior trimmers with loose-laid, or so-called cut and fit installations, or at least to do an efficient job with said tools.

A further important advantage of the present invention is that it is so designed that the blade of the cutting tool cannot contact and cut into the wall or baseboard during the trimming operation, thereby preventing the defacing of said surface, in addition to preventing premature dulling of the cutting blade, as frequently occurs with conventional carpettrimming procedures.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel template as described which is designed to follow the contour of the wall, thereby ensuring that the carpet edge closely abuts said wall despite irregularities or deviations therein.

A further object of the invention is to provide a template which is designed to produce a trimmed outer edge adapted to closely abut a wall or baseboard, as described, and which template can also be advantageously utilized when trimming the adjacent edges when it is required to form a seam in the car pet.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a carpet-trimming template as described which can be formed of a single piece of sheet metal or the like, thereby providing an implement which is relatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture.

A further object is to provide a novel carpet-trimming template as described which can be produced in a variety of sizes, depending upon the intended use of the particular template, and including relatively small models for use in corners and offset areas and the like.

A further object is to provide an accessory for use with the present template which promotes the accurate trimming of carpet portions intended to be installed under overhanging projections close to the floor, such as radiators and protruding cupboards or the like.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel template which can be used with equal effectiveness on jutebacked, poly-backed, or rubber-backed carpets, as well as with unbacked floor coverings such as linoleum or the like.

A further object is to provide a new and improved trimming implement which does not have to be adjusted and set depending upon the thickness of the particular material being cut, as is required with many prior trimming implements.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel carpet-trimming template wherein the carpet edge and adjacent nap is not cut on a bias or bevel, as occurs in many conventional carpet-trimming operations, but, rather, wherein a squared edge is provided which is adapted to fit snugly and evenly against the wall or baseboard, and wherein the nap or pile sweep is not beveled downwardly and does not slope toward the wall.

A further object is to provide a new template which is ordinarily used in the trimming and installation of a wall-to-wall floor covering, as described, but which template can also be advantageously utilized where it is desired to leave a margin, or open space, between the edge of the floor covering and the wall.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel template as described which can be used with a variety of carpet cutting tools.

Still further objects of the present invention are to provide a novel carpet-trimming template which is durable and longlasting in construction, which requires no special training or skill in its use, and which is otherwise particularly well adapted for its intended purposes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying drawings, wherein there is illustrated one preferred embodiment of the invention and a modification thereof, and wherein the same reference numerals designate the same parts in all of the views:

FIG. I is a perspective view of the novel carpet-trimming template comprising the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the template;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the template with a portion of a carpet positioned thereon;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the template showing the carpet thereon being cut;

F [v 5 is a side elevational view showing the trimmed carpet in broken lines in the raised position it assumes when positioned on the template and, in full lines, showing said carpet in its lowered condition abutting the wall; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary side elevational view ofa modified form of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 1-3 of the drawings, the new and improved template comprising the present invention is preferably formed of a single piece of sheet metal, or similar strong and durable material (including plastic), and includes a flat bottom 10, a back portion ll which merges into an upwardly inclined arm l2 (FIG. 3). The front face U of said template is preferably concave in design, being formed on the arc ofa curve, and includes an upper portion I4 which merges into a transverse first leg member 17 extending inwardly and downwardly at a predetermined angle in facing contact with the aforementioned arm member 12 (said members 12, I7 preferably being spot welded or otherwise permanently joined for maximum strength and rigidity) to a point abutting said template back wall I]. At the latter point said leg 17 is bent vertically downwardly a short distance and then forms a second leg 18 spaced from and extending upwardly and outwardly in parallel relationship with said first leg 17, said legs [7, 18 being spaced slightly apart to form a knifereceiving slot 20, the purpose of which will be seen.

The lower portion of said template front face 13 is curved downwardly from said knife-receiving slot 20 and merges with the forward edge A of the bottom member 10. One of the important characteristics of the present invention is that the distance between the forward edge A and the rearward end B of the template bottom member is precisely equal to the distance from the point A to the point C (designating the knife-receiving slot 20) on the template front face, as measured along the curved surface ofsaid concave front face. This is a critical feature of the present invention, as will be hereinafter described.

In the use of the present invention in the installation of a wall-to-wall carpet, and referring now to FIG. 3, the template is positioned on the floor 21 with its back II firmly abutting the room wall 22, and the outer edge portion of the carpet 25 is rested on the upwardly curved front face 13 of said template. As will be noted, the illustrated carpet includes a nap 26 of wool, cotton, nylon, or any other desired material, and a flexible backing layer 27 formed of rubber or the like. In this respect, incidentally, it is to be understood that the invention can be utilized with jute-backed, poly-backed, rubber-backed, or any other suitably backed carpet, as well as on an unbacked floor covering, and the invention is not limited or confined in this respect. Ordinarily a substantial portion 25' of said carpet 25 projects upwardly above the top of the template and it is the function of the present invention to facilitate the severance of said excess carpet material so that the carpet edge will closely abut the wall 22, as will now be described.

To trim said excess carpet material, and referring now to FIG. 4 of the drawing, a suitable cutting tool such as the illustrated knife blade 28 is aligned with the recess 20 and is used to cut through the carpet 25, said cutting tool being manually urged downwardly through the carpet material and drawn from one end of the template to the opposite end thereof. preferably employing either a sawing or slicing-type motion (which sawing motion is not possible with most conventional trimming implements). The severed carpet portion 25' is discarded, and when the cutting tool reaches the end of the template said template is merely shifted laterally along the wall and the cutting process repeated until the entire length of the carpet has been trimmed, the continuous shifting of said template permitting the same to conform to deviations, if any, in the wall contour.

The knife-receiving slot 20 in the present invention is relatively narrow, as described, in order to prevent undesirable lateral movement of the blade 28 and possible inadvertent variation from the intended cutting line, and due to the presence of the integral back wall portion of said implement it is impossible for said cutting tool to cut into and mar the surface of the wall 22. Moreover, and particularly when said tool is used in a tile bathroom or the like the avoidance of said cutting tool engaging the wall prevents the blade from becoming prematurely dulled.

As mentioned, and as illustrated in FIG. 5, due to the fact that the distance A-B on the template comprising the present invention is the same as the distance A-C, the trimmed edge of the carpet is designed to closely abut the wall 22 after the upper, excess portion has been severed as described, Moreover, due to the face that the knife-receiving slot 20 is formed on a predetermined angle, as described, the edge face 24 of the trimmed carpet is substantially flat and is adapted to snugly abut said wall surface 22, in contrast to the use of conventional carpet-trimming instruments wherein the upward bending or deflection of the carpet during the cutting operation produces an undesirable angle or biased edge face.

After the excess has been trimmed therefrom the edge portion of the carpet can be cemented or otherwise secured to the floor to retain the same in place if desired, but unlike conventional wall-to-wall carpet-laying operations with the present invention the bonding of the carpet to the floor is not a requisite, as mentioned. The elimination of an adhesive or other connection between the floor and the carpet in the present invention also allows the occupant to remove said unattached carpet if he should move to a new residence, which is not permitted under the law in some states if the floor covering is affixed to the floor. Moreover, with conventional carpet-laying procedures wherein the carpet edge portion is bonded to the floor prior to the trimming operation it has been found that the adhesive connection between different portions of the floor and carpet is not always uniform and as a result wrinkles and furrows can be formed in the carpeting as the cutting tool is pressurably drawn therealong, in addition to the possible buckling of the carpet if it is cut too long or the formation of a gap between said carpet and the wall if the carpet is inadvertently cut too short. As mentioned, once the carpet is secured to the floor it cannot be shifted to compensate for such irregularities.

The length of the novel template comprising the present invention can be varied as desired, and for trimming corners and offset areas a relatively short template can be used. Moreover, while the template is preferably formed of a single piece of sheet metal or the like, for economy of production, said implement could, of course, be made in separate joined-together sections, or it could be formed of plastic or other material, and the invention is by no means to be limited or confined in this respect. Moreover, while the template front face I3 is preferably concave and formed on the arc of a curve, as described, said front face could be a straight, angularly disposed member, or even convex in form, and neither is the invention to be limited in this respect.

While the present invention is intended primarily for use in laying wall-to-wall carpeting as described, it is also possible with the present template to trim said carpet in a manner leaving a margin, or bare space, of predetermined width, between the carpet edge and the wall if such an arrangement should be desired. To accomplish this it is merely necessary to lay a board or other type of spacer against the wall, which board or spacer is of a thickness equal to the desired margin, and to abut the back of the template against said spacer. Then, after the carpet has been laid on the curved front face of the template and the top, excess portion of said carpet severed as described, when said spacer and template are withdrawn the trimmed edge of the carpeting will be spaced precisely the desired distance from the wall.

it is contemplated that for trimming and laying wall-to-wall carpeting under low projections, such as a radiator or protruding cupboard, wherein there is insuflicient space to position and manipulate a cutting tool in the template with the latter in abutting relation to the wall, an accessory can be provided to facilitate said task and to ensure a smooth, level floor covering beneath said overhanging projection. In this respect, and with reference now to FIG. 6, the novel accessory comprises an elongated, removable bar 30 which is designed to fit closely within the knife-receiving slot 20 and to project slightly beyond the face of the template, as illustrated. Preferably said bar 30 is somewhat longer than the template proper to permit the same to be readily grasped and removed when it is not required. In the use of said device the bar 30 is inserted into the slot 20 and the installer rubs a piece of chalk or the like on the upper, projecting edge 3| of said bar. The outer portion of the carpet 25 is then rolled up on the front face of the template with said chalked bar edge 31 abutting the underside of the carpet backing 27, and pressure is applied to the top surface of said carpet to cause a straight chalk line to be visibly formed on the carpet underside. The installer then removes the template and manually cuts through the carpet along the chalk line. The result is that the trimmed edge of the carpet fits snugly and evenly against the wall beneath said overhanging projection.

The modified tool illustrated in FIG. 6 can also be advantageously used where there is no overhanging projection in those instances wherein the carpet to be installed has a very long nap and wherein it is desired to cut through said carpet from the underside thereof in order to definitely ensure that said nap or pile sweep is not beveled during the cutting operation.

From the foregoing detailed description it will be seen that the present invention provides a novel template-type instrument for use in the trimming and laying of wall-to-wall carpeting or other floor coverings, which new device provides a number of advantages over the trimming devices and procedures heretofore used. With the present invention it is not necessary to bond the carpet to the floor prior to the trimming operation, and yet the trimmed edge of the carpet is designed to automatically fit snugly and evenly against the wall or baseboard. In addition, due to the fact that said template is continuously re-positioned along the wall during the trimming operation it automatically closely follows the contour of said wall and ensures that the carpet edge conforms to said wall despite any irregularities or deviations therein. Moreover, with the present invention the blade of the cutting tool cannot contact and cut into the wall or baseboard, thereby preserving the appearance thereof, as well as preventing dulling of the blade.

The present invention is also unique in that it can be advantageously used on carpets having different types of backings, as well as with linoleum, linoleum tile, carpet tile, or various unbacked floor coverings, and it does not require any adjustment or special setting to accommodate the particular floor covering being installed.

Still further advantages of the present carpet-trimming template are that it requires no special training or skill in its use, it is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and it is durable and long lasting in construction.

It is to be understood that while one preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described herein, numerous changes or modifications therein may occur to those skilled in this art and what is intended to be covered herein, therefore, is not only the illustrated form of the invention but also any and all variations or modifications thereof as may come within the spirit of said invention.

What I claim is:

l. A template for use in trimming wall-to-wall floor covering, comprising: a flat base adapted to be rested on the floor, said base having a forward edge and a rear edge; a back projecting upwardly from the rear of said base member positionable in abutting relationship against the wall of the room; a front face on said template extending upwardly and rearwardly from said base forward edge; a longitudinal cutting tool-receiving slot in said template front face extending substantially the length thereof, the distance between the forward edge of the template and said cutting tool-receiving slot being equal to the distance between said template forward edge and the back of said template, the outer portion of the carpet to be trimmed being adapted to be rested on the template front face with the portion of the carpet to be severed projecting above said slot whereby a cutting tool can be projected through the carpet and into said template slot and drawn therealong to sever the excess carpet portion thereabove, the trimmed edge of said carpet being adapted to abut the wall adjacent the floor upon the removal of said template.

2. The template recited in claim 1 wherein said template is formed of a single piece of sheet material bent to form.

3. The template recited in claim 1 wherein said template front face is concave, being formed on the arc of a curve.

4. The template recited in claim I wherein said tool-receiving slot is adapted to accommodate cutting tools of various styles.

5. The template recited in claim I and including an elongated bar removably insertable in said cutting tool-receiving slot, said bar projecting a short distance beyond said template front face and having an upper longitudinal edge adapted to have chalk deposited thereon.

6. The template recited in claim 2 wherein said back member merges with an upwardly and forwardly angled arm and wherein said front face includes a lower portion and an upper portion which merges with a first leg member extending downwardly and rearwardly in facing contact with said arm, said leg member being bent vertically downwardly adjacent said template back member and then upwardly and forwardly to form a second leg closely spaced from and parallel to said first leg, said second leg merging with the lower portion of said front face, the space between said parallel first and second legs forming said cutting tool-receiving slot. 

1. A template for use in trimming wall-to-wall floor covering, comprising: a flat base adapted to be rested on the floor, said base having a forward edge and a rear edge; a back projecting upwardly from the rear of said base member positionable in abutting relationship against the wall of the room; a front face on said template extending upwardly and rearwardly from said base forward edge; a longitudinal cutting tool-Receiving slot in said template front face extending substantially the length thereof, the distance between the forward edge of the template and said cutting tool-receiving slot being equal to the distance between said template forward edge and the back of said template, the outer portion of the carpet to be trimmed being adapted to be rested on the template front face with the portion of the carpet to be severed projecting above said slot whereby a cutting tool can be projected through the carpet and into said template slot and drawn therealong to sever the excess carpet portion thereabove, the trimmed edge of said carpet being adapted to abut the wall adjacent the floor upon the removal of said template.
 2. The template recited in claim 1 wherein said template is formed of a single piece of sheet material bent to form.
 3. The template recited in claim 1 wherein said template front face is concave, being formed on the arc of a curve.
 4. The template recited in claim 1 wherein said tool-receiving slot is adapted to accommodate cutting tools of various styles.
 5. The template recited in claim 1 and including an elongated bar removably insertable in said cutting tool-receiving slot, said bar projecting a short distance beyond said template front face and having an upper longitudinal edge adapted to have chalk deposited thereon.
 6. The template recited in claim 2 wherein said back member merges with an upwardly and forwardly angled arm and wherein said front face includes a lower portion and an upper portion which merges with a first leg member extending downwardly and rearwardly in facing contact with said arm, said leg member being bent vertically downwardly adjacent said template back member and then upwardly and forwardly to form a second leg closely spaced from and parallel to said first leg, said second leg merging with the lower portion of said front face, the space between said parallel first and second legs forming said cutting tool-receiving slot. 